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French Freedom of Speech

The mayor of Calais is suing Marine Le Pen of the Front National for saying "repeatedly" that citizens in Calais need a pass issued by the mayor to get to their own homes (because of the number of migrants in the town). In fact, the passes are issued by the police prefecture.

Who's en colère today?

The SNCF (toujours eux), regional train employees in the Lyons area guaranteeing unpleasant travel from the 17th-21st December
Also yet another strike by Sud-Rail, a particularly truculent SNCF union in the south of France, this time five days in January: 6,7, 21, 22 and 23. "We have no choice." Right.

Sedulia's Sites

Your diploma matters in France

Stéphane, a guy I know, is studying to be a translator. I asked him why, and he said, "I was bored with teaching math in high school, and there isn't anything else I can do with my degree." I was surprised to find out that he had a university degree in math.

"What do you mean, there's nothing else you can do?" I said. "Businesses are always looking for people who are good at math. You could work in lots of places." I have a young relative in the U.S. who just graduated with a degree in math and had no trouble finding a job crunching numbers.

"No, business jobs all require a degree in applied mathematics, or in informatique," he said. "No one will hire you in business with a degree in pure math."

Ah, credentialism! It is hard at work in France, where employers are often staggeringly specific in their demands for a degree. It's also normal to demand an applicant "âgé de 25 à 35 ans." Illegal, but normal. (You also have to put your photo on your resumé. Maybe that's why you never heard back.)

That reminded me of a conversation I had with Jacqueline, who cuts my hair. I've known her for years and always admired her style and the way she is raising her children. "How did you choose to be a coiffeuse?" I asked, expecting to hear, as I do in the States, "Oh, I've always loved hairstyles!"

Jacqueline, who was standing behind me, looked at us in the mirror and said evenly, "I didn't choose. It was the only thing I could do after I failed my Bac."

Her assistant chimed in, "None of us chose. If it was to choose, we'd probably all be doing something else."

[Book title below: What career for your child? Your child is between 13 and 20 years old. Is he creative, commercial, therapeutic? Here is a method to evaluate his aptitudes, define the project best adapted to his possibilities, and easily help him choose his future career.]

Elaine Sciolino in ParisOf the N.Y. Times (or as it prefers to be known, The N.Y. Times) and writer of La Seduction: How the French Play the Game of Life

Le Franco PhoneyA long-term Australian expat in a French ski resort. I can't believe it took me so long to discover this one.

The Compleat AngloI have to like a blog that is named The Compleat Anglo. An Englishman married to his Madame, in the Basque country

Flipflop France23-year-old Sasha, an Oregonian from Forks (town made famous by the Twilight vampire saga), has settled down in France's second city, Lyons. [No that isn't a mistake. I spell it the old-fashioned English way.]